


stardust

by lapinprince



Category: Persona 5
Genre: And also fast dancing?, Awkwardness, During Canon, Flirting, M/M, No Spoilers, Slow Dancing, Unresolved Romantic Tension, Unresolved Sexual Tension
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-31
Updated: 2017-07-31
Packaged: 2018-12-09 07:15:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,114
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11664246
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lapinprince/pseuds/lapinprince
Summary: Goro’s scheduled to dance with a celebrity on a variety show, and needs someone to practice with. He learns that Akira can dance, and asks to practice with him.He regrets this very fast.





	stardust

**Author's Note:**

> this is what happens when you ask someone 'whats a fic prompt that youve wanted to write but you probably wont' 
> 
> with my dance background i figured heck yeah ill give it a shot. have something nice and light hearted before i tackle my next fic yanno?
> 
> anyway. this is kind of unbetaed so bear with me, but i just wanted to get it up since ive been working on this almost the whole month ;; 
> 
> feel free to hit me up on [twitter](https://twitter.com/princenocolo) and say hi! i love akechi goro, kurusu akira, and most importantly shuake

* * *

_but even any other thing i do  
is a little bit of me and a little bit of you_

* * *

Goro always wondered what it was like to be decently good at most things in life. Having to be the detective prodigy, he was naturally quite skilled at his specialties, and other skills could be safely forgotten as “not in his field”, and he was forgiven for his lack of talent in these areas. It was comfortable being within this sort of safety net; he could focus on what he knew he was good at instead of being expected to do other things. Most of the time, anyway. There were times, like now, where he would be asked to perform tasks well out of his skillset, and he always wondered how those universally talented people did it, and how good they had to be at anything to be considered as such.

Which was why he thought that Kurusu Akira was quite the strange one. The rest of their group of friends always referred to him as a “jack of all trades” both in and out of the Metaverse, but Goro was never sure to what extent that phrase applied to the boy. Was he secretly a master at everything? Or was he the type that could just read instructions and absorb it perfectly and perform it as if he was a natural? He seemed proficient a huge variety of things, such as creating infiltration tools and bouquets of flowers, cooking and making coffee, and even sewing, as Goro was just learning.

“You made that?” Ryuji gaped as Akira opened his pencil case during a study session that the boys of the group had one day. It was a simple white pouch with black star designs embroidered on it but regardless, the pouch looked professionally made with its straight topstitching and embroidery. Akira nudged his glasses up his nose, producing the pencil he needed and zipping the pouch shut.

“Yeah. We made pencil cases during class at my old high school,” Akira replied, sketching a few lines on the graph in front of him. 

“That is remarkable,” Yusuke said in wonder as he picked up the pouch, “They do always say that textiles are indeed an art, but the craftsmanship on this is phenomenal, Akira.” Somehow, the black haired boy managed to stay completely composed amongst all of the beaming praise. 

“I had a good teacher,” he said modestly, and the subject was dropped there. They returned to idle chatter as they worked, and pats on the head to Morgana whenever he slinked by. Ryuji and Yusuke packed up for the night and headed out hours later, leaving Goro still pouring over his case file, cold cup of coffee at his side.

“I’m going to close up for the night, but you can stay as long as you want, Akechi. Just make sure Akira locks up after you leave,” Sojiro called, pulling his apron up above his head and hanging it on a nearby hook.

“Ah, I can pack up now-” Goro said, moving to close the lid of his laptop, but a hand on his shoulder stopped him.

“You don’t need to leave,” Akira said, piling up his own papers and sliding them into a folder. “I get lonely, you know.” The slightest hint of a smirk crossed his face as Goro rolled his eyes.

“Are you asking me to stay, then?” 

“Potentially. C’mon, we should do something fun. We’ve been studying all day,” Akira fluttered his eyelashes at the detective, and Sojiro groaned in the background.

“Go easy on the poor guy.” He put his hat onto his head and went towards the door. “I’ll see you both, have a good night.” The two boys waved towards him, and the cafe fell to a comfortable quiet after the door shut.

Goro began to put his laptop away when the pencil case piqued his attention once more. He picked up the pouch and examined it carefully.

“It’s impressive that you made this, Kurusu. Sewing is a difficult skill to master,” he remarked, turning the pouch over in his hands. “You surprise me with how much you’re skilled with, it’s certainly admirable. You wouldn’t happen to know how to dance too, would you?” Goro asked jokingly, though he hoped the answer was one that could help him with his current problem. He glanced up to see an amused, rather mischievous look on Akira’s face.

“Well, yes, actually. Why, don’t you?” he asked, smugly resting his chin on his hand.

Goro narrowed his eyes as he shut his laptop. “I do,” he said defensively, not lying completely. “I just don’t know anyone else who does. I’m supposed to dance with a celebrity on a variety show next week, and I haven’t exactly had anyone to practice with.” He really did not need to look like a fool on national television, but none of his higher ups were concerned enough with his reputation to enrol him in dance classes, and he didn’t push the matter any further. He was already embarrassed at the thought of his potential incompetency of dancing.

“Sure. Let’s go upstairs,” Akira said, standing up with his belongings in his arms. Goro froze slightly. Now? He wasn’t mentally prepared enough to do this now, he needed to practice by himself more before potentially showing off how clumsy his dancing was in front of Akira, or at least give himself the time to accept the thought of looking like a fool. 

“Wait, we don’t have to practice now- don’t you have class tomorrow, Kurusu-?” Goro asked in a slight panic, as Akira was already tugging at his arm to stand.

“What class?” he replied coolly. Goro paled slightly. “Don’t worry, Akechi. I won’t laugh.”

 _Too hard,_ Goro thought anxiously, finishing Akira’s sentence in his head. He supposed that making a clumsy oaf of himself in front of Akira was only one of the worst things that he could ever do. So if he made a mistake on television after, it wouldn’t be so bad, right? He began to resign to his fate as Akira’s insistent yanking of his arm brought him to his feet.

“Leave your stuff down here, let’s go.” Taking his hand this time, Akira led Goro through Leblanc and up the stairs into his room. Goro initially flinched at the touch and tried to pull away, but Akira firmly wrapped his hand around Goro’s gloved hand. Obviously, there was no escape.

“Actually, wait right here for a second,” Akira said once they approached the landing to the attic. Goro tilted his head slightly at the abrupt change of pace as Akira hopped up the rest of the stairs and disappeared around the corner. Goro leaned his head against the wall as he waited, unsure of what he got himself into, not quite sure what “a second” was. After a sudden call from up the stairs, it seemed that Akira was ready. Goro climbed the staircase and walked into the attic to see Akira bent over and poking at his phone, wearing a loose black v-neck T-shirt and what looked like a black pair of leggings, and nothing else. 

Goro was not surprised, and he struggled to look at Akira’s face and not elsewhere.

“Dancewear, hm? I didn’t think this would be such an occasion,” Goro said drily, suddenly feeling very overdressed with his detective’s coat and gloves. Akira stood up straight and rolled his neck.

“I didn’t want to be wearing my uniform anymore,” he said plainly, another mischievous look on his face as he watched Goro’s gaze. Goro promptly looked away.

“I see. I honestly had no idea that you danced.” Goro debated taking off his jacket, and his indecisiveness was solved as Akira reached forward to unbutton it for him.

“Kurusu, what are you-”

“I did dance when I was younger,” Akira said, smoothly pushing Goro’s jacket off his shoulders, somewhat satisfied that the boy didn’t fight him. “Dance and gymnastics.”

Gymnastics? That made sense, considering how Akira was capable of doing standing backflips for literal days and acrobatics that could easily feature on the Olympics. Goro shrugged out of his jacket and placed it aside.

“I see. I suppose I’m rather lucky to find such a knowledgeable partner then, hm?” Goro loosened his tie slightly and cleared his throat. The impish smirk on Akira’s face appeared once more, and he pressed a few buttons on his phone. [Soft classical music began, with a playful lilt that filled the room.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mmCnQDUSO4I) Goro was musically inclined enough to recognize the timing of the music- was he planning to waltz? He supposed that a waltz would seem simple enough for him to perform while still looking elegant. Akira stepped forward.

“You know how to box step, right?” he asked, and Goro ran over the steps in his head to make sure he did. Step forward, then step back… on second thought, he’d have to actually do it if he wanted to see if he could. 

“Yes,” he lied, pleading himself to have the ability to keep up with Akira. “Um, would you be leading, then?” The smile on Akira’s face made Goro’s cheeks heat up.

“Of course. Take your shoes off so you don’t step on my feet.” Akira nudged at Goro’s shoes with his foot.

“Wh- I wouldn’t step on your feet-!” Goro protested, taking his shoes off anyway. He returned to Akira after placing them aside, feeling very awkward and very conscious of his own movements. Despite them having similar physiques, Goro felt like a burlap bag of rocks compared to Akira in his sleek attire and purposeful grace. 

“Ready?” Akira asked, holding his hands out. Goro hesitated, and placed his hands in Akira’s, internally grateful that they were starting with a dance position that was far less personal than usual.

“Okay. Let’s start with box steps together,” Akira said, curling his fingers with Goro’s. 

Thankfully, Goro did remember how to do a box step. The tension in his shoulders melted away as the two boys moved, perfectly in sync with the music. The whimsical beat of the music made it easy for him catch the rhythm of turning their steps, and he couldn’t help but smile as they both travelled around the room in wide arcs on the creaky floorboards of the attic. The elusive smirk on Akira’s face told him nothing of how he felt about this, but Goro pushed the anxiety out of his mind. He shouldn’t think too hard about this, he just needed to move.

Akira’s warm hands in his as they both moved to the music felt so natural, he almost didn’t want it to end. He closed his eyes, content in the moment, but his eyes shot open a second later after the feeling of a hand suddenly snaking around his torso.

“H-hey!” Goro yelped, and his left hand was quickly scooped up to rest on Akira’s shoulder, his right hand then clutched in Akira’s left. Without missing a beat, the two continued their dance, Goro’s face flushed red at the sudden contact.

“Sorry. I forgot to switch positions,” Akira grinned sheepishly, his hand resting right on the curve of Goro’s waist. Goro’s hand clung to Akira’s shoulder as he tried to keep up, he swore that the music was starting to go faster.

“You’re catching on, though. Can you turn?” Without warning, Akira began to put more pronounced sway in their movements, and Goro had no choice but to follow along. Their turns felt more sharp, more deliberate, and Goro found himself pulled closer to Akira, their chests nearly touching as they swept back and forth across the floor. He realized at an inopportune time that this was possibly the most intimate he has ever been with anyone, with his body nearly pressed up against Akira’s. He mentally pleaded himself not to think too deeply about that. 

The song began its end, and with a flourish of both the music and Akira’s hand the two finished with a pose, Akira’s leg bent slightly to cross with the Goro’s, their other legs extended behind them. Both of them were tilted to one side at the waist with perfect form, and Goro was a bit unsettled that he had so naturally followed Akira’s finish without needing to be told what to do. 

“That was fun. You’re a good partner.” Akira finally removed his hand from Goro’s waist as the two straightened up fully. Goro rubbed at his cheek, pulling out his phone.

“...Thanks. I actually have the dance that I was asked to practice on a video, that I’ve needed to rehearse specifically... um… here.” Goro found the file and showed his phone to Akira, who leaned in to watch. [The first few notes of the music began to play, and Akira’s eyebrows rose.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ic4PQ-tnwJw)

“Tango? Huh, I mean, this is a pretty simplified choreography, but I’m surprised they’re having you dance a tango on this show at all,” Akira said, studying the movements of the two dancers on the screen. He took the phone in his hands and held it closer to his face. “Are you leading in this one?” 

“...No. The celebrity is a dancer, and so they thought it would be funny to have her be the leader and me follow,” Goro said, cheeks heating up at the thought of practicing this dance with Akira. If he was already embarrassed by dancing so closely together, then the sensual movements of this choreography would murder him. But again, if he made a fool of himself in front of Akira, doing so in front of the rest of Japan wouldn’t feel so bad. Akira pushed a finger to the screen and dragged it back to watch the choreography from the beginning. 

“Okay, I think I got it. Have you memorized it yourself?” Akira asked, setting the phone aside after he had watched the video a few times. Goro was slightly shocked that Akira had absorbed the full choreography already, and nodded dumbly. “Okay, great. Let’s start,” he said, and he pressed play.

The two got into position rather quickly, facing each other and resuming the same dance position as before, Akira’s hand on Goro’s waist. Goro began to step back purposefully, Akira following. Goro tried to ignore the faintly predatory look on Akira’s face as they both tapped their feet and began to travel.

The music was quite different from before. While the waltz was playful and rather bouncy, the music for the tango could only be described as passionate and sharp. Goro wasn’t sure which he liked better; the waltz allowed him to be more freeing with his movements, swaying back and forth and sweeping around the room. But for the tango, the movements needed to be more precise and like a tightly wound spring, not a centimetre off. He felt rigid but calculated, and he knew that it would look stiff if he worried too much about his movements. It was a fine balance of letting go and reeling himself in, the former something Goro had little experience with. He closed his eyes, letting the music resonate in him as he continued to follow Akira’s lead.

“You’re pretty good at this, you know,” Akira murmured, his grip on Goro’s hand tightening as he slowly dipped Goro, easing him down into his outstretched arm. Goro’s flushed, wide eyed look up at Akira made him chuckle. “That’s a good thing,” he added, pulling Goro up from the dip to continue. 

Goro said nothing as he concentrated on getting the moves. Akira spun him around so Goro’s back was to Akira’s chest and put his hand back on his waist, though his hand dragged up slightly more than necessary. Goro swallowed nervously, thankful that he was facing away from Akira for now at least. They circled the floor once and Goro was spun around again to face Akira once more. The two boys locked eyes and slowly began to circle around each other in their stance, a move that always looked so passionate and tense when done by the dancers. Goro wondered what he looked like right now.

“Forgetting something?” Akira asked, his memory of the choreography video nearly crystal clear, unfortunately for Goro. Grumbling to himself, Goro placed his hand to Akira’s chest, looking just past Akira’s ear to avoid looking at him in the face. Satisfied, Akira smirked wider and completed the turn, reaching for Goro’s hand again to pull him back into position.

As he rehearsed, it seemed that Goro’s solo practice really did pay off, as he wasn’t having much trouble at all with the choreography. This was as smooth a rehearsal as with the celebrity days before, though he was positive that his practice with the celebrity wasn’t nearly as uncomfortably intimate as this runthrough. Goro was suddenly pulled tightly back against Akira’s body and he dipped his upper half backwards, arm outstretched as the music came to a finish. The sound of adoring fans screaming and applauding filled his head momentarily as he imagined the crowd during the actual show. He huffed slightly and tried to pull away from Akira, but the curly haired boy kept him hostage in his arms.

“Kurusu, could you-” Goro began, stopped when he saw the look on Akira’s face. It was still somewhat predatory, of someone who knew his absolute control of his own body. It was Joker, the smirk that fangirls would fawn over if he was more of a public figure. Goro quite honestly wanted to die.

“Sure thing,” Akira said smoothly, pulling Goro back up and stepping back, though he didn’t let go of his hand. 

“...Kurusu-” Goro sputtered. Akira lifted Goro’s gloved hand to his lips and bowed slightly, and Goro’s face turned a lovely scarlet.

“It’s getting late, isn’t it? I guess we could go over it once more if you wanted to-” Akira said after straightening, smiling brightly. 

“...I should-- I should go home, really,” Goro said in a strained voice, flushing even more when he realized that Akira still had his hand. He gently pulled his hand away and stepped back.

“Oh, alright. Let me know if you need to practice more, okay?” Akira handed Goro’s phone back to him. He took it back and shoved it into his pocket, scooping up his jacket and shoes.

“Sure. Yeah. I will. Thanks.” Goro gave a quick bow of his head and he left the attic as soon as possible, leaving Akira smiling to himself.

* * *

A week later, Goro nailed the performance on the variety show. Akira watched it live and texted him congratulations. For some reason, Goro never answered.

**Author's Note:**

>  
> 
> _i could be staring at somebody new  
>  but stuck in my head is a picture of you_  
> 


End file.
